Kamala Harris’ dizzying rollout as a presidential candidate somehow pulled off the rare feat of looking organic and organised, fun but without cringe-inducing artifice. Vibes shifted, memes spread, coconuts fell.

Things were bound to get hokey.

Somehow, the Biden-turned-Harris campaign managed to make former President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama, once America’s coolest political couple, sound like parents in a Lifetime movie calling their child at summer camp.

Early Friday morning, the Harris campaign posted a video it produced that depicted a phone call from the Obamas, which had taken place Wednesday, in which they gave Harris their much-awaited endorsement. Barack Obama’s 5:01am post (7pm Friday AEST) of the video on the social platform X had more than 50 million views by 2pm (12am AEST).

The historical weight of the moment — the........

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